Being Buffy Summers: The Trilogy
by Jeanny
Summary: What happened to Buffy after she saved the world again? This is a repost of the three fics in this trilogy (Between, Behold and Beyond) under one heading, as has been requested. Please adjust your bookmarks, as the individual fics will be deleted.
1. Between - Part 1

Title: Between

Author: Jeanny

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing, especially the characters in this story. I'm merely borrowing them for the pure pleasure of messing with their lives.

Distribution: I don't mind, just credit me and let me know where it's going.

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Through the end of Season 5.

Feedback: Please. jeannygrrl@hotmail.com

Summary: What happened to Buffy after she saved the world again (spoilers for The Gift).

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It hurt. It really, really hurt. She remembered that, that it hurt. But then, all of a sudden, it didn't. And that was good. It was really nice not to suffer anymore.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed since then. She no longer had a sense of it here. She'd had time to take in her surroundings in detail, she knew that. Of course, there wasn't much. Detail that is. Pretty much white on white with white trim. Some silver, that's great. Hoo boy. There was a chair, pretty much all there was was a chair, so she sat. She still had a body of sorts it seemed. Which made sitting possible. Yay.

"This was not what I expected," she said to the room (if you could call it that, because there weren't really walls; more like a space) at large.

"What did you expect, Buffy?" She stood at the soft voice behind her, and was more than surprised to see who it was.

"I thought I'd see my mother. I really didn't think I'd see you, you're not even dead...unless...are you?" He arched an eyebrow ironically and gave her a small smile.

"Pretty sure I'm not dead, but you never can tell, can you? But I'm clear I'm not your mother."

"Why are you here?" Buffy stared at him but he only shrugged in response. Silence between them, for seconds or years, she could no longer be sure.

"Why am I here?" He finally repeated back to her, crossing his arms across his chest. She stared at him, her annoyance rising and rapidly becoming anger.

"You must know. Where am I? And why am I here with you? It makes no sense."

"What does?" Buffy threw up her hands and stalked away in exasperation at another noncommittal reply.

"This is what I get? This is my reward? If this is heaven, they've WAY exaggerated in the brochures."

"Um, I can't be sure, Buffy, but I don't think that this is heaven," He called after her. She whirled and headed back to him, still bristling with aggravation.

"Why not? I'm dead. I know I'm dead, because I died."

"You did that," he agreed pleasantly.

"So if I'm not in heaven...oh God, did I go to..."

"Hell? As if!" he snorted. "Although, got to love the irony. But fairly certain not, pretty easy on the eternal torment here."

"Where then? Where is this place?" He looked at her solemnly for a long moment.

"Between."

"Between what?"

"Just between," he shrugged again. Buffy exploded.

"You can't have just between! Between implies other things that you are...stuck between! Like between heaven and hell, between a rock and a hard place, between life and death. I can't be between, I'm dead, dead is not between...unless it is." Buffy sank back into the chair, staring at him balefully. "But that would just suck so royally. And it still doesn't explain where my mom is."

"It doesn't," he agreed.

"Are you just going to agree with me or answer my questions with other questions all the time, because it's really getting on my nerves."

"Am I?" He responded with another shrug. She stared at him coldly.

"Can I slay you?"

"Probably. But you don't really have to. If you really wanted me gone, I'd be gone already." Buffy smiled at him.

"Bye, Oz." She said to the empty space.

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"Can't say as I like between," she grumbled a few (seconds? hours? days? years?) later.

"Of course you don't. It's really unsettling." Buffy looked over her shoulder at her new companion and sighed.

"Let me guess. You're not dead either." The new visitor cocked her head for a moment, considering the question, then shook it confidently.

"No, though I could be lost again, I guess. Why am I here, Buffy?" Buffy buried her face in her hands.

"I wish I knew. I don't know why I'm here. I don't understand any of this. Oz said that I'm between."

"Oz? Oz was here?" She sounded shocked.

"Yes, he was here, but I sent him away. He couldn't answer any of my questions."

"Of course not," she snorted derisively. "What does he know about this sort of thing? Oh, except in that overall being smart and understanding existentialism kind of way. But Angel read Sartre too, and in French. I'm pretty sure Oz doesn't read French. Maybe you should get Angel."

"No...Tara, there's no way you could know all those things. Willow didn't tell you that stuff, did she?" Tara shook her head sadly.

"I'm not sure if Willow even knows all that."

"But I do," Buffy answered quietly. "You're not really here, are you? It's all just me. I'm alone." Tara reached out as if to touch Buffy's cheek. Buffy closed her eyes and sighed, the sound of it echoing in the emptiness. "I'm alone."

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Later...

"This can't be all there is!" Buffy cried into nothingness.

"What an absurd notion! Of course it isn't!" Buffy didn't need to turn, this voice she knew almost better than her own.

"Go away. You're just a part of me talking to me. Been there, done that, hated it, go." She didn't bother to look to see if he was gone, she knew how to deal with this now. She stared into the whiteness for an unknown time.

"You're amazingly stubborn, you know that?" Buffy jumped and whirled around.

"Why are you still here, Giles? I wished you gone."

"You cannot wish me gone. I'm not like the others, Buffy." Buffy considered that for a moment, then shook her head despondently.

"But you're not really you, are you?" Giles regarded her solemnly. He removed his glasses and wiped them with a gesture so familiar that Buffy felt her heart shatter. She found herself feeling more alone than she had before, and she hadn't thought that was possible.

"You are correct that I'm not Rupert Giles," he answered finally.

"Then who are you? And do you know why I'm here?" She gestured wildly around at the whiteness she had come to despise.

"Between," he offered helpfully. She glared at him.

"Yes, between," Buffy answered between clenched teeth.

"It's not a punishment, you know." Buffy couldn't help it, she punched him in the gut. She was a bit startled to connect with something solid, but the fact that there was something tangible there made her feel a bit better. Watching the faux Giles collapse to the ground with an astonished expression made her feel a lot better. She stood over him, hands on hips, her voice steady and cool steel.

"That's not an answer. I'm so sick of not getting answers. And when I was creating people out of my own head to talk too, which by the way, thanks for that," she interjected sarcastically, "well, that made sense, because I can't tell me what I don't know. But you're different, being apparently someone not made by me, so you must have an answer. And, gotta tell you, for something that isn't punishment this right now pretty much feels like hell!"

"I'm sorry you feel that way. Please don't hit me again, it's quite unpleasant." He answered with a little Giles-like huff. He looked at her expectantly. Rolling her eyes, Buffy helped him to his feet. He brushed himself off even though there was no possibility that anything could have gotten on his clothes in this all white void. "Now, I'm here to tell you some, er, things that you need to know. I've taken this form because it represents the one of the two greatest authorities in your life. My companion has taken the form of the other. We thought it best that I speak to you first, so as to minimize any confusion." Buffy stared at him blankly.

"Huh?"

"Oh dear, you don't understand," He ran his hand through his hair, pacing a bit in a manner so like her Watcher that Buffy was again heartsick. "I know that you have expectations which we have sought to mitigate, and I'm afraid we've failed rather miserably in that regard. I warned them that this would be quite hard for you, but of course they never listen to me."

"Giles...whoever you are...stop. What are you saying? Who are they? Never mind that, who are you, really? What expectations?"

"Who did you really assume you'd see here, Buffy? You've said it time and time again." Buffy sensed the presence of another person behind her, and she knew who it would be before she even turned around.

"My mother."

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	2. Between - Part 2

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing, especially the characters in this story. I'm merely borrowing them for the pure pleasure of messing with their lives.

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"Hello, Buffy." The eyes, filled with affection. The smile, warm and inviting. Buffy had to close her eyes to blot out the sight of her mother's face. She turned back to face the Giles imposter before she opened them again.

"Why are you doing this to me?" she asked, her voice low and full of pain. "It's beyond cruel."

"It wasn't meant to be unpleasant. You see, we have no physical forms of our own. It was decided that these forms would be the ones you would be most likely to listen to. We do need you to listen, Buffy." 

"Where is my mother? My real mother, not this..." she pointed behind her at the Joyce lookalike.

"Your mother is fine, Buffy. She's in a different place, a good place. She's at peace," At the sound of Joyce's voice, Buffy released a choking sob then collapsed into the chair again, burying her face in her hands.

"Please, Buffy..." The Giles imposter looked at his companion for help. "I told them this was a bad idea. She won't listen to us now, and how can we blame her?"

"She has to listen to us, or all this has been for nothing. And you know she can't stay between forever. She has to make her choice or it will be made for her."

"Mnmmphh," Buffy said, her voice muffled by her hands.

"I beg your pardon?" he responded, startled. Buffy lifted her head and glared at him, her eyes rimmed in red.

"Names," she said thickly. "I will not call you...and her...by their names. You must have your own. What are they?" The two exchanged glances, then shrugged.

"It is difficult to explain, but we have no need of such things. Without form there are no sounds, and no need to have sounds with which to call ourselves," The Giles double spoke first.

"We have...impressions...of each other, that serve to identify us," The one that looked like Joyce added.

"Fine, guess what? I'm naming you. You," she pointed at the Giles lookalike, "are now known as Thing One. You," she could barely look at her mother's face as she waved at her, "are Thing Two." They nodded, both more than slightly mortified, then Buffy continued. "Now, you say you want me to listen. Consider me all ears, especially if you plan on explaining what the HELL is going on around here!" The replica of Giles now known as Thing One cleared his throat and nodded, indicating that he would begin the story.

"I know you know something of Slayer history. I believe that you've even encountered the spirit of the First Slayer on occasion."

"She tried to kill me in a dream, then she gave me cryptic and dreadful gift ideas. We're practically sisters. Go on." Buffy settled back into her chair, since it was clear that this might take a while. Neither of the two seemed to be in a hurry to get to the point.

"At that time, evil nearly won the day before the battle had even begun." The Joyce lookalike that Buffy was forcing herself to think of as Thing Two took up the tale. "The First Slayer was originally intended to be the ultimate instrument of the darkness, to bring about a quick end to the light that they saw emerging in the human species. She was the demon's first attempt to create what eventually became vampires."

"The girl was strong, and her soul was pure," Thing One continued speaking as she paused. "She cried for justice as they attempted to tear it from her body, and we heard the plea. We gave her a choice. We would grant her release or she could choose to fight back. She chose to become the Slayer, to fight against the demons knowing it meant an early and probably violent death. She fought for humanity, and she died." 

"The Slayer was the one hope that humanity had. But how could we ask another to take up that mantle?" Thing Two asked, and Buffy could sense the compassion she felt. Another twinge of longing for her mother nearly brought her to tears again, but she forced herself to continue to listen. "The First had called to us, but we knew the light within humanity had to be saved, despite the cost. So another girl, another soul was given that horrible choice and she agreed to become the Slayer. When she died, there was another. For hundreds of years, I can't even tell you how many there were. As humanity became strong, more and more demons were pushed or fled into other dimensions. Humanity had won the earth, but the victory was far from secure. We knew the battle would need to be fought perpetually or the demons would eventually overrun the earth anew. And the demons had figured out how to force out human souls and possess them."

"Vampires," Buffy said flatly.

"Yes." Her expression clouded as Thing Two nodded. "And things had to change. People no longer remembered the truth about demons and now vampires, they began relegating that knowledge to their fairytales and myths. We had been asking each Slayer to take the responsibility. We realized that soon no one would, and we could not risk that. So we took the choice away, keeping it until after the Slayer died."

"Okay, you just lost me. How can you choose not to be the Slayer after you've already been the Slayer?"

"You can't. You, Buffy Summers, are the Chosen One. You are the Slayer, and you fought the forces of evil and you died. In fact you died twice, but the first time you were here, you never got a chance to choose." Buffy stared at his so familiar face in even greater confusion.

"The first time..." Buffy trailed off. A sudden flash of memory hit her. Her eyes widened. "I was here when the Master killed me. But then Xander brought me back."

"Yes, another Slayer had already been called. It was a very...unusual situation. Quite unprecedented, in fact." Thing One flashed Giles' little self-deprecating smile.

"So what does that have to do with why I'm here now? What is the choice you keep talking about." The two gave each other long looks again, before the Joyce clone began speaking.

"The choice we put to most Slayers here is really quite simple. They can choose to proceed to the next level of existence, what you commonly call Heaven, where they are reunited with others that have also gone on, or they can return to the earthly plane and live out as normal mortals the lives they were previously denied."

"But in light of your unique circumstances, Buffy Summers, we wish to offer you a third choice. One to which I beg you give serious consideration," The Giles double was once again polishing his glasses as he spoke, the absurdity of the gesture sinking in for Buffy.

"Do you even need those?" Buffy asked, pointing at them. She knew she was going off-topic, but it was driving her crazy. He looked sheepish as he replaced them.

"In this form, I do, actually. It's rather annoying."

"The third choice is vital, Buffy." The woman with her mother's face glared at her companion, pulling them back to the topic at hand. "We need you to do something we have never asked any other Slayer to do. We would not ask it of you, either, if so much didn't depend upon it." Buffy had to look away as she saw strain in the eyes that she knew so well. Even though she knew these beings were not actually Giles or her mother, her instinctive desire to please them had already kicked in. She fought to remain unaffected as she looked Thing Two in the eye again.

"So you're telling me I can choose to be with my mother," she emphasized the word to let this Joyce know she was painfully aware of who she was not looking at, "or I can choose to have a normal life. What's behind door number three? And why am I thinking I'm going to really hate it?" Both the beings sighed and looked at each other again. When Thing One spoke, it was with a hesitancy Buffy knew too well. Giles with bad news.

"The third choice...is for you to return to be the Slayer again." The silence that hung in the air was heavy, charged like before a major thunderstorm. When Buffy finally spoke, her voice was soft but fury tinged every syllable.

"It's never enough for you people, is it? I fought, I died, I lived, I fought and I died again. I saved the world, I saved my sister, I did everything I could, everything I was supposed to. When is it enough?" Thing One nodded gravely, clearly hating his own duties in this matter.

"It is enough, Buffy. This is your choice, and no one will force you to make a different one. Just please let us show you why we're asking you to make this sacrifice."

"Please," Thing Two echoed his plea, tears shimmering in her eyes. Buffy couldn't bear watching her mother cry, even when she knew it wasn't really her.

"Okay, this had better be the best reason ever." Buffy's words echoed in the air as the three of them shimmered and faded out.

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Author's Note: This story will be continued in a second fic called Behold.

Feedback please!


	3. Behold - Part 1

Title: Behold

Author: Jeanny

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing, especially the characters in this story. I'm merely borrowing them for the pure pleasure of messing with their lives.

Distribution: I don't mind, just credit me and let me know where it's going.

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Through the end of Season 5.

Feedback: Please. jeannygrrl@hotmail.com

Summary: Buffy gets a glimpse of how her death has changed the world (spoilers for The Gift).

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Darkness. A void of black on black. Buffy blinked her eyes several times, but the view on the inside of her lids matched the one her open eyes beheld.

"Okay, I take it back. Between's starting to look pretty good." She felt a warm hand slip into her left hand and give it a reassuring squeeze, a moment later the same happened with her right. She knew it was the beings that had taken the forms of her mother and Giles, but it was comforting just the same. Just knowing she wasn't alone in the darkness was good.

"Hold on," a familiar voice whispered in her left ear. She was surprised to realize it wasn't her mother's voice or Giles'.

"Almost there," murmured another voice at her right. Again the voice was familiar, but not what she had been expecting.

And then there was light. At least some light, although the overall effect was still dingy. It still took Buffy's eyes a moment to adjust after the total darkness. When she looked at the two people holding her hand, she knew who they would be, but she was still surprised by their appearance.

Long red hair, denim overalls, striped long sleeved t-shirt, smiley face book bag. Willow from sophomore year, smiling at her to her left.

Short black hair falling in his eyes, wildly patterned shirt mixed with brown pants that somehow managed not to match, Sixteen year old Xander grinned at her from her right. Buffy opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

"It's still really us," Xander said. Willow's head bobbed enthusiastically in a very Willowy manner to show her agreement. "We just thought, the other forms seemed a bit hard for you to handle, and these might be more comforting."

"Cause, the next part, it's gonna be a bit rough, you know, but we're here for you Buffy, we'll get you through it. You need to see."

"See what?" Buffy looked more closely at her surroundings, and recognition dawned on her. "I know where we are."

"Yes," The false Willow and Xander said in unison.

"I don't want to be here. I don't want to see this," Buffy said, her voice rising desperately. Her eyes became transfixed on what she hadn't seen before, what she hadn't wanted to see, and further protests caught in her throat. The two beings that looked like her friends wordlessly gripped her hands tighter as they stared down at the body of Buffy Summers. She looked like she might have been asleep, but they all knew differently.

As the three stood silently, they watched as Buffy's friends approached her body. The real Willow, supported by Tara, tears streaming down her face. Xander, his expression almost empty, lost, carrying Anya, whose pain-etched face was solemn. Giles, stoic as always except for his own tears. And Spike, bloody and broken, sprawled on the ground and weeping openly. Buffy felt her own eyes tearing, and ripped her hands from the grasps of the two images of her friends.

"Is this what you wanted me to see? See them grieve for me? Did you think I didn't know they would cry over my body?" Buffy shook her head, forcing her own tears back. "It doesn't matter, none of this matters as long as-" A noise behind her made her whirl around, and she saw her sister, standing at the bottom of the hastily erected stairwell, tears streaming down her face. "Dawn!" Buffy cried, and began to run to her sister. The beings imitating Willow and Xander looked at each other for a moment, then followed at a slower pace. Buffy reached Dawn's side and reached out to touch her face, only to find her hand pushed aside by an unseen force. She looked at her companions in askance.

"No one can see or hear us Buffy, and you can't touch. Any of them. All that you see here is fixed, can't be changed," the being Buffy had called Thing Two stated, cocking her head sadly in a Willow-like manner, her tone edged with sorrow. The Xander double just looked down, his hands in his pockets. Buffy threw up her hands in frustration.

"Then why-"

"Just watch, Buff." Thing One, now Xander, commanded softly, and Buffy found herself turning with them to watch from this new angle. The real Willow had fallen to her knees and was now crouched over Buffy, her tears falling onto the dead Slayer's face, making little rivers in the layer of dust that had settled on her. Tara kneeled behind her, her hand running through her girlfriend's hair, the only comfort she could offer at the moment. She was crying for Buffy and for Willow as well. With an anguished cry Spike suddenly rolled himself into a beam of sunlight that was coming through the unfinished building, his eyes closed, tears shining. He held himself in the shaft of light, his body beginning to smoke. Buffy gasped. None of the others even seemed to notice, so transfixed were they by the sight of the Slayer's still form. From her vantage point Buffy felt her sister rush past her, her scream a keening wail of pain.

"Spike!" Dawn shrieked, hurtling herself as fast as her dress and injuries would allow, throwing herself on top of him and rolling him out of the sunlight just as he burst into flames.

"Dawn!" Buffy screamed, looking at the young Xander and Willow images who were her companions. "Do something! Stop this!" The two looked at her sadly, shuffling their feet but saying nothing. Buffy tore her gaze back to what was happening, frustration tearing her up inside.

"Oh, God!" the real Xander moaned in horror as the dress Dawn was wearing caught fire, torn between wanting to go to their aid and his reluctance to let go of Anya. Giles seemed paralyzed by the sight of Dawn clinging to Spike, her screams rising as the fire spread.

"Do something!" Buffy screamed, running towards her sister even though she knew there was nothing she could do. Almost as if they heard her cry, Tara and Willow's heads both snapped up, Willow's eyes the now familiar black.

"Madesco!" Willow said softly but with power. Instantly water fell from out of nowhere and doused the pair. The fire was immediately extinguished. Spike and Dawn looked like flood victims. Water pooled around them, but nowhere else. Spike blinked several times in pain before looking at the shivering girl still clinging to his neck, sobbing brokenly.

"Don't...leave...me...please...can't...leave...me...Spike..." Spike seemed to come to some kind of decision, nodding so imperceptibly that Buffy thought she was the only one who probably noticed. He placed his arms around the shaking girl, holding her to him.

"It'll be okay, platelet. Spike's here, not going anywhere. I'll be with you, Dawn. Till the end of the world." He held her closer, realizing quickly that the wetness that slicked his hands was not water but blood. He instinctively reverted to game face as Dawn's sobs suddenly subsided and she slumped forward with a small cry. "We've got to get her out of here, she's hurt," Spike snapped tersely.

"Anya needs a doctor too," Xander added, looking down with concern at his girlfriend. She looked back at him, her eyes still not quite focused.

"S'okay, Xander, just a bad dream. Got to get up, I'm opening the shop for Giles," Anya murmured as if to support Xander's statement, stirring weakly in his arms.

"We can't leave Buffy here," Willow said softly, her voice rough with tears shed and unshed. She looked up at Giles, his expression still distant. She frowned at him. "Can you...?"

"Never mind me!" Buffy screamed, standing at a midpoint between where Spike lay with Dawn and where her own body rested, looking desperately at each of her friends in turn. "Dawn needs a doctor! Get her to a hospital!"

"I said, Dawn's hurt. She needs a doctor and she needs it now," Spike unknowingly echoed. "We have to go!" Spike stood with difficulty, his face an exquisite mask of pain, and limped across the room with the unconscious girl cradled in his arms.

"Wait. You'll just burst into flames again before you go two feet, Spike. Which is, you know, fine with me, but then you'll drop Dawn. Just hold on. Hold on," Xander gently kissed Anya on her forehead, then laid her in Tara's welcoming arms. "Watch her for me, Tara, please." Tara nodded, her hand brushing Anya's hair back in a soothing gesture as the other never left Willow's head. Xander looked at Giles for a moment, then shook his head as he hurried away. "I'm going to get a vehicle, the first one I find that's big enough, and drive it right in here, so be ready."

Spike gave him one quick, almost grateful nod, then sank to the ground again, Dawn still cradled in his arms like a child. Angry blisters were beginning to form on skin exposed by the burned garment she wore. Giles still stood like a statue, and Spike began to bellow at him in pain and frustration.

"Some Watcher you turned out to be, Rupert. Let the Slayer die, let her sister burn so her sacrifice would mean nothing. How could you? What would Buffy say?" At the last Giles seemed to snap from his frozen state, striding irately across the room to tower over the vampire.

"You will not speak her name again. You haven't the right, she's a...an angel, a hero, I will not have you sully her memory by daring to presume that you could possibly know what she would say or feel!"

"Giles, don't," Buffy called softly, the murderous anger in his eyes causing her heart to further break into a million pieces.

"Giles, stop it. This isn't helping!" Willow called desperately, tears still falling freely from her eyes although her sobs had subsided. She still leaned over Buffy, running shaking fingers over her cold cheeks and through her blonde hair, as if she could somehow soothe her. Giles didn't reply or turn towards her, but he did move away from Spike and Dawn standing with his back to them all.

"Please, enough. No more. Please tell me my sister is going to be alright." Buffy turned away from the tableau of pain her friends presented and faced the two people in the room that could see her and answer her questions. The two looked at each other for a long moment before the Xander one answered.

"The injuries she has aren't life threatening. She can recover from them." Buffy sagged in relief before noting the carefully worded answer.

"Wait, that's not the same thing as saying she'll be okay. She will be okay, right?" The Willow double tucked her hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture, then reached out and grabbed Buffy's hand.

"That part isn't fixed yet. It depends on a lot of different things, not the least of which is you and your decision."

"Are you saying that you'll hurt my sister unless I agree to be the Slayer again?" Buffy asked sharply. Both the Xander and Willow look-alikes recoiled in horror.

"God, no, Buffy!" Thing Two gasped.

"We would never harm her or anyone else. You have to know that. This isn't about us and what we'll do. This is about the fate of all humankind, and that includes your sister." The Xander duplicate added solemnly.

"I don't understand." Buffy looked back and found she couldn't tear her eyes away from her sister, so fragile, cradled in Spike's arms. "I don't understand any of this. Why show me this if there's nothing I can do to help?"

"You need to know what cannot be changed, in order to understand that which is not yet certain," the false Willow recited, her tone reminding Buffy of the way her friend would read fortune cookies, only this Xander was unlikely to add the "in bed" phrase to this particular declaration. He simply looked at her and shrugged.

"I know it's confusing, Buff. Please, just let us finish showing you everything. I think you'll understand by the time we're done."

"Xander? Why is it so dark?" Anya cried out suddenly, and Buffy shuddered.

"Is Anya...?" She began, but the Willow and Xander look-alikes simply grasped her hands in the same positions they had originally arrived in, their faces grim.

"It's time to go, Buffy," Thing One said firmly, his dark brown eyes unreadable.

"Time to go," echoed Thing Two, now avoiding Buffy's gaze.

"But..." Buffy's protests died on her lips as the scene shimmered into blackness yet again.

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Feedback please!


	4. Behold - Part 2

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing, especially the characters in this story. I'm merely borrowing them for the pure pleasure of messing with their lives.

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"I have to tell you, I really hate this part." Buffy's scathing tone had a fearful edge. The darkness was the kind that made you feel you had slipped off the edge of the universe, that perhaps you no longer even exist. Only the pressure on her hands that was the presence of her two companions gave her the sense that she was not coming apart, floating all alone in the void, and so she clung to them tighter than ever. She hated her own weakness, and hated even more that she was feeling reliant on those she held responsible. Most of all she hated that they were currently taking the forms of her two best friends, because it made it that much easier for her to start to depend on them the way she did the real Xander and Willow, and that would be a bad mistake. She was certain it would be. Well, almost certain.

"We're here with you, Buffy," Willow's voice floated around her, as comforting as a blanket. *Thing Two,* Buffy thought to herself fiercely. *Not Willow!* "We're almost there, hang on."

"Hang in there, Buffster," Xander said softly in her ear, and she glared in his general direction.

"Don't call me that, you're not Xander!" The last came out more harshly than Buffy had intended, and she felt one of the hands start to slip from hers. "No, don't go, please!"

"I won't go, Buffy." The voice was quiet, but the hurt around the edges of it made Buffy's heart hurt. She remembered that tone from when she had turned her friend down for the Spring Fling. Funny how that memory had stuck with her all these years.

Dim light hit Buffy's eyes again, and she took a moment to adjust. Looking at her companions again, she was not really surprised to see their appearance had changed again. Although still Xander and Willow, they now resembled her friend's current forms. They both wore tunics and pants that were a dingy gray, almost colorless. Their own complexions and hair, especially Willow's, seemed impossibly bright against these new clothes.

"Where are we?" she asked, looking around at the clearly institutional setting.

"Just outside Los Angeles," Thing Two volunteered, squaring her shoulders bravely as if about to face some great danger.

"This is where Faith is," Thing One told her, his brown eyes still looking at her with an injured look that was pure Xander. She had to look away guiltily as she processed what he had told her.

"Faith...we're coming to see Faith. Why are we coming to see Faith?" The two simply turned and started walking down the corridor, Buffy following close behind.

"Remember, Buffy, from here on what we're showing you are events that are not fixed. They can be changed. But if things remain as they are in this world, these events will come to pass," Willow's voice echoed eerily in the corridor.

"By things remaining as they are, you mean my not agreeing to be the Slayer again." Buffy's flat tone indicated it was not a question, but they treated it as one.

"Well, that's the main thing of the things. There could be other things, but the thing that you said is the thing we're here about, not those things, whatever they are," Thing Two Willow-babbled, and Buffy was surprised to catch herself smiling. She managed to wipe it from her face before Xander's face turned back to her.

"It's really the only thing, but I think you already know that." He gave her a small lopsided smile when she nodded in return.

"Well, yes, it is, but I didn't want to put all that pressure on you, Buffy, I mean, you need to make your decision without being forced," Willow's clone said hesitantly.

"Ummm, kind of why we're here, not so much to put pressure on her, but to show her the consequences, and so on and so forth. Bit late to start trying to shelter her from the truth now," Xander's voice held a mixture of exasperation and amusement.

"I know that!" She huffed at him in annoyance, then shrugged helplessly. "But in this form I can't seem to help myself. Buffy, I'm not supposed to but I want to protect you," The wide green eyes filled with affection looked just like her friend's, and it took all of Buffy's willpower not to reach out and hug the girl.

"It's okay, just show me what you have to show me." They had reached the inside exercise area of the compound. It was surrounded by a cadre of armed guards, and the women inside were clearly marked as inmates by their brightly colored workout uniforms, but Buffy thought it was actually pretty nice. Most of the equipment seemed fairly new. She glanced around and almost immediately spotted the other Slayer. Faith had her eyes closed and was working up a light sweat doing pull-ups on a high bar that was high enough that her feet were dangling over their heads. Buffy noted that the others were giving her a wide berth, and speculated to herself that the rogue Slayer's reputation had preceded her. Either that, or she had used her Slayer abilities to jump directly to that bar and they knew better than to mess with someone who could do that.

Faith's eyes shot open at the same moment Buffy's Slayer senses kicked into overdrive. Faith dropped to the floor in a slight crouch, looking warily about her, and Buffy unconsciously moved in as if to watch her back. Thing One's grip on her arm stopped her, and his small headshake reminded Buffy that she couldn't help even if she wanted to. She scanned the room and quickly located the source of the familiar sensation of trouble. She also noticed that the guards seemed to have all vanished, and her alarm intensified.

"That girl, she's some kind of demon," Buffy said pointing at a woman that stood easily seven feet tall, her prison uniform straining to cover her formidable stature. Her appearance was generally humanoid, but her eyes were glowing red and Buffy had the uneasy feeling that the short black spikes covering her head weren't the punk hairdo they appeared to be. As if by an unseen signal, the other inmates moved wordlessly as one to the far side of the room, leaving Faith and the gargantuan demon prisoner facing each other.

"Hello, gorgeous," the demon growled, her voice sounding like a blender filled with small pieces of metal. Faith didn't wince but merely nodded, crouching in a combat-ready position, her eyes alight in anticipation of the coming battle. The demon threw a few punches at Faith's head, which Faith easily dodged. Faith gave her opponent a cocky smile.

"You can do better than that, can't you, Ginger? Cause as much as I'm enjoying the dance, I'd much rather fight," Faith taunted. With a low roar the demon moved in to grab the dark-haired Slayer and met a dip of her shoulder instead. She found herself flying through empty space, landing against the far wall with a bone-jarring thud. Buffy grinned and suppressed the urge to whoop with delight. Faith simply nodded with satisfaction, grabbing a towel from a nearby bench to wipe off the sweat still gleaming on her brow from her workout. "Don't suppose whoever hired you told you, but you aren't the first girl to get this gig."

"Don't matter, gorgeous, I never lose. You're gonna die, Slayer," the demon snarled, springing to her feet and circling Faith again. The Slayer made a show of sighing dramatically.

"Funny, that's what the others said, too, before...and well, lookie here." Faith ran her hands over her body in a provocative, almost obscene way. The demon growled and closed in more cautiously this time. Faith gave her a mocking smile. "Back to the dancing, Ginger? Funny thing is, I'm feeling the beat, but I think I'm supposed to be getting beat, and that's not happening, is it?" 

The demon hollered and made another clumsy charge. Faith almost laughed as she stepped nimbly aside to evade it, planning to kick the woman in the backside this time for being stupid enough to try the same tactic. This time, however, the artless rush was actually a trap. With unbelievable speed the demon grabbed Faith and threw her to the ground, landing on top of her and pinning her arms over her head. Faith bucked fiercely, growling, but was unable to throw the heavier woman. She blinked in shock as the glowing red eyes looked down at her in triumph.

"How about now, gorgeous? Is this better for you? I know it's better for me," the larger woman cooed, extending an unnaturally large tongue to lick the sweat from Faith's neck. "Oh, so salty! Honey, you're gonna be the best meal I've had in fifty years!" Faith managed to get a hand free and reached up to grab hold of the demon's hair, even as Buffy shouted a warning that couldn't possibly be heard.

"No, don't!" Faith's cry of pain confirmed Buffy's fear. That was not hair. Faith drew her hand back in front of her face, gaping at the small dots of blood beginning to drip from her hand and the angry red welts surrounding them in alarm.

"What the hell...what are you, bitch?" The demon laughed, a grating sound that caused Buffy and her companions to wince.

"I told you already. I'm the one whose gonna be your death, Slayer. But then, you know that, don't you? And by the way, the Council sends its regards." At that Faith closed her eyes almost serenely, a single tear running down her cheek the only sign of her suffering. Buffy, on the other hand, whirled on the being in Xander's form.

"The Council? The Watcher's Council? That's what she means, isn't it, because I don't think the Dairy Council's drumming up a lot of milk drinkers by killing them!"

"The Watcher's Council wants another Slayer," Thing One responded, never taking his eyes off of Faith's form, while the Willow double had turned away, unwilling to watch. "Faith's stuck here, so she's no use to them, plus as far as they're concerned, she's a lost cause. Everyone's given up on her, as I'm sure you already know." Buffy bristled at the implication of his words, but the quiet reply came from his counterpart.

"Not everyone." Sounds of commotion from the outside corridor followed by screams from the inmates who had until that moment been watching the fight in almost surreal silence diverted Buffy's attention towards the entrance. A blur in black came barreling into the room and made its way without delay towards the demon still straddling Faith on the ground. As he drew himself up to full height and sliced downward with the broadsword, Buffy felt like she couldn't breathe. She whispered his name so softly it wasn't even audible to her own ears.

"Angel." The head of the demon flew across the room and the inmates scattered to avoid being hit by it. Splatters of viscous green blood flew about covering Angel, Faith and anything nearby equally. For the first time Buffy was grateful for the shield that kept her from really touching anything here, because it worked both ways. Angel roughly pushed the headless corpse off of Faith and reached down to gently touch her face. Faith's eyes fluttered open, equal measures of pain, shock and confusion in her expression.

"Angel, how?" He reached down and grasped her left arm to pull her to her feet, noting how she was cradling her right hand to her chest.

"Cordy. Vision. I've got to get you out of here." Faith laughed brokenly, still wincing at the pain radiating from her hand.

"Um, in case you've forgotten, stud, this is max security. You can't break me out without getting dusted." She swayed dizzily, and Angel reached out and grabbed hold of her, holding her up to keep her from falling. "Don't matter much now...my dance partner had some kind of poison hair, and I got a good handful. I can feel it, Angel. It's gonna take me out of here. Those bastards won."

"No, Faith, it's not deadly, just nasty. But you will die if I leave you here, the Council's won't stop, they want you dead, and I've already lost..." The haunted look in his eyes told Faith what his mouth suddenly could not. Her mouth was suddenly dry and her voice was hoarse when she spoke.

"B...B's gone." He nodded curtly, avoiding her gaze and getting a better grip on his broadsword. He waved it threateningly at some of the other inmates who seemed like they might approach them. "Did they kill her?"

"No, it was a god...there's no time to explain." Comprehension dawned in Faith's eyes as the pieces of her personal puzzle slipped into place. 

"No new Slayer?" Again he gave just a quick head shake, half-walking, half-dragging her towards the entrance. 

"What? No new Slayer was called? When I died?" Buffy looked angrily back and forth between her companions. The two looked at each other before nodding back.

"We told you before, the circumstances which created two Slayers were Twilight Zone-y." Buffy tilted her head at the Xander double. Buffy smiled ironically, although she didn't find any of this amusing. This whole adventure was total Rod Serling for her.

"You actually said 'unprecedented,' but you were running around as Giles then." She turned back to Angel and Faith, watching the vampire's gallant and ultimately doomed attempt to escape with the Slayer play out. Willow's look-alike reached for her hand and continued to speak to her as they watched the pair be surrounded by guards and Angel surrender his sword. Buffy actually allowed the contact, again astonished at how reassuring it was.

"When you died this time, it would have been impossible for us to call another Slayer. It may not seem like it, but there are laws, rules, governing everything, including this. Like your laws, they sometimes have loopholes. Two Slayers at the same time ended up being one of those loopholes, which has since been closed. We can never again have two Slayers, unless..."

"Let me guess. My agreeing to be the Slayer again, that's another loophole you've found." Buffy watched as the guards roughly separated Angel and Buffy and held them with guns to their chins as the warden approached. A tall imposing woman with shockingly white hair, she held command of the room without any apparent effort.

"Yes," the being that was Willow's double agreed in a whisper. Together the three observers saw the unfolding events in silence. The warden walked up to Faith, motioning to the guard to remove the gun from her face. She held the girl's chin in a firm but oddly gentle grip.

"You again. This is the fifth time this month you've been involved in trouble in here, Wilkins. You remember what I promised you would happen if this kind of thing happened again." Faith's eyes widened and she shook her head violently as the warden released her face.

"No, Warden, please, don't! I'll go nuts in there," Faith begged tremulously, palpable fear coming off her in waves. Buffy frowned, wondering what sort of threat could reduce Faith to a quivering mass. 

"You've left me no choice, Faith. As of now, you're going to be in complete solitary for the duration of your stay here. We have your accommodations already arranged, and no one, not even a guard, will lay eyes on you until your first parole hearing." Faith's knees buckled and she collapsed, weeping.

"She's hurt, she needs medical attention," Angel interrupted hastily, then dropped his gaze as the warden's icy glare was fixed on him.

"I know what she needs, young man. As I know what you need," she leaned in closer to him and murmured in his ear, "and what you are, vampire." Angel's eyes widened, and he met her gaze in shock. She shook her head at him wearily and gestured towards the guards that held him. "Escort our young criminal friend to the front, a police unit is waiting for him." They nodded and went to comply, but she held them up with a stop gesture. She coolly addressed Angel once more. "You've got a lot of things to answer for, not the least of which is trying to break an inmate out of my prison. I guarantee you won't be trying that again." She leaned in closer, and spoke at a volume she knew only vampire hearing would perceive. Because of their unique situation, Buffy and her escorts could hear her as well. "This is the only way I can keep her safe, trust me. No one will harm the girl in here again. I know you have questions, Angel. Talk to Kate." She looked him in the eyes again, seeming satisfied despite his lack of expression that he understood.

Buffy nodded to herself, the pieces of this puzzle beginning to fit as Angel was led away to the sound of Faith's frantic screams for him to stay. She turned to the two beings accompanying her again.

"Faith is safe now, and that means there's no Slayer out there." The two nodded, Willow's face in particular showing her relief at Buffy's seeming comprehension. Buffy looked back at Faith, throwing the guards off of her with her superior strength and trying to run after Angel, only to fall to a tranquilizer dart shot by the warden herself.

"You've got it, Buff. You understand. The Chosen One needs to be protected. She can't protect mankind now." The Willow clone was bouncing with excitement. Buffy looked back at Faith's still form being carried away under the warden's watchful gaze and shook her head adamantly.

"But...you really don't need me. I mean, the Slayer isn't the only one fighting evil anymore, it's like a growth industry. There's Angel and Cordy and...other people...here. And Sunnydale has the Scoobies, and Giles...they won't give up. I would have been dead a long time ago if it weren't for them. And, I mean, Willow's got all that witchy magic, and now Tara's better. Between the two of them, and Spike, they can hold down the fort until a new Slayer is called, right?" The two beings looked at each other and sighed heavily.

"Looks like we need to make one more stop before you make your decision, Buffy," Xander's brown eyes met Buffy's and she involuntarily shivered.

"Why don't I like the way you said that. Where are we going now?" She held out her hands this time for them to grasp, dreading the upcoming journey back into the dark.

"Back to Sunnydale. Once you've seen what's coming, what will happen without you, then you can make your decision." The sound of Willow's voice wavered, echoing and fading as they vanished.

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Okay, there's one more story to come, it'll be called Beyond, and I should have it up soon.

Feedback please!


	5. Beyond - Part 1

Title: Beyond

Author: Jeanny

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Co. own all these characters, but I like to play with them. As long as I'm not making money and nobody gets hurt, no harm done, right?

Distribution: I don't mind, just credit me and let me know where it's going.

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Through the end of Season 5.

Feedback: Please. jeannygrrl@hotmail.com

Summary: After learning more about what the future will hold, Buffy makes a decision that effects her own destiny (spoilers for The Gift).

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This time in the darkness, Buffy couldn't help but flashback to the scene she had left in Sunnydale before. The images of her sister on fire, of her friend's overpowering grief, of Spike cradling Dawn in his arms, of Anya's eyes losing focus as Tara held her, no matter how hard she tried she couldn't shake them. She was afraid what she would see when she finally got to Sunnydale, and even though the false Xander and Willow she traveled with had assured her that the events she was going to see could be changed, the dread in her stomach left a sour taste in her mouth. The taste of fear, a not unfamiliar one. When she came out of the darkness this time, it was with equal measures of relief and trepidation.

Buffy let out the breath she hadn't even realized she was holding as her eyes adjusted to the light once again. She immediately checked on her companions, and was vaguely pleased to see that for once their appearance hadn't changed. She looked around at the familiar surroundings and smiled faintly.

"I'm home. This is my home." The living room and dining room looked almost exactly how she remembered them, but there was something different. It took her a minute to figure out what exactly had changed. There were black out curtains on the windows. She looked at the Xander figure she had dubbed Thing One, a question in her eyes. Before she could ask or he could reply, the answer walked into the room trailing behind her sister with grim determination in his eyes.

"No buts, Dawn. I need you to pack pronto, you and me are gettin out of this bloody town before it starts bleedin us." Dawn turned and stared at him wide-eyed, the shock and sadness of memory there causing Spike to look down at his shoes rather than see that pain. "Again," he added under his breath, almost like a prayer. More like a curse.

"And the others? We're going to just leave them?" Dawn stared at him until he met her gaze again.

"If they're stupid enough to stay here." Dawn's horrified look caused him to soften his tone. "I think they will come, Dawn. There's nothing any of us can do. We stay, we die. Even your sis knew to run from a battle she couldn't win, and I promised her I'd keep looking out for you. Right now that means we bleedin get out of Sunnyhell. We go fast and we go far and we pray that this won't catch us." 

"But it will, won't it?" Dawn said, her voice flat with resignation. Spike didn't bother to answer. It wasn't really a question.

"Pack. Only what you can carry, little bit. We're stoppin by the Magic Shop and then we're leaving this cursed place. Nothin left here now anyway." Tears sprung up in Dawn's eyes and she angrily blinked them away. Buffy felt her heart breaking as she heard her reply, she had no way of knowing how almost right she was.

"Buffy and my mom are here." Dawn ran from the room and up the stairs without waiting for Spike to deny her statement. He watched her go, shaking his head. He wondered, not for the first time, how he had gotten himself into this mess.

"They're not here anymore, they're in another place. A much, much better place, is what I've been told." His eyes glistened for a moment, and Buffy thought she saw a hint of tears, but it was gone so quickly she couldn't be sure. His sorrowful expression remained as he stared into space, lost in thought or memories, she couldn't be sure. Buffy turned to Thing Two, the companion wearing the guise of Willow, who was also wearing a sad expression.

"What is happening here?" Without responding the two beings grabbed onto her hands, and as they shimmered out again she barely caught Spike's quiet words They chilled her to her soul.

"Don't worry about your mum and Buffy, you'll be seeing them soon enough."

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The trip through the darkness this time was brief, and when they reemerged they were in another familiar spot. Buffy again smiled faintly, surprised at how glad she was to see the Magic Box again. Her pleasure was mitigated by the sight of her friends sitting around the table covered with dusty ancient tomes as always, expressions grim. Giles stood behind them, and Buffy was shocked to see how old he looked, like he had aged twenty years since she had last seen him. Weariness came off of him in waves. Xander's body was stiff and his face was completely blank. He seemed to Buffy almost like a wax figure of her friend, because the spark of life and humor that had always been behind his eyes even under the worst circumstances was gone. It was then that Buffy noticed that Anya was conspicuously absent from the gathering. Tears pooled in her eyes and she turned to the false Xander next to her, shocked to see him staring sadly back, eyes filled with the same tears.

"Where's Anya? She didn't...please tell me that he didn't lose her!" Thing One gave his head a little shake, then inclined his head towards the tableau before them. The meaning of the gesture was instantly clear to Buffy, though she was uncertain why; she was to watch and not to question, her guides would no longer speak until this scene had played out.

Unable to look at Xander again, she studied Tara and Willow. Tara slumped in her seat, one arm around Willow's shoulder and her other hand on her arm. She was rubbing her girlfriend's arm in a placating gesture, her expression troubled and slightly fearful. Willow, on the other hand, was more tense than Buffy thought she had ever seen her. Her expression was dark with anger and frustration, and she looked about ready to explode. Tara spoke, and it was clear to Buffy she was trying to diffuse a situation.

"I...don't know if it will help, but there are still some books I borrowed back at Willow's, there could be something..." Giles shook his head slowly. It seemed like they were all operating in slow-motion to Buffy.

"No, there won't be. Magic is not the answer here. I'm afraid with the Council's failure..."

"Failure. That's an interesting word, Giles." The bitterness in Willow's tone shocked Buffy. She'd never heard her friend speak that way. "You heard what Angel said. They tried to kill Faith. Not break her out of jail, kill her. As much as I have...issues...with Faith, and maybe I wouldn't have minded if she stayed being coma girl, she's a human being. Not a disposable commodity. Oh, I forgot, for you maybe it is."

"Willow..." Tara whispered, still trying to soothe her, as Giles turned away from her accusing gaze.

"I regret that what I did was necessary, Willow, but it was. Necessary. And I fought the Council on the matter of Faith."

"Not too hard, Giles. Definitely not hard enough. You knew what they were planning and you didn't tell us. You could have warned Angel, or me. We could have gotten her out of there somehow. We need a slayer here, instead she's in solitary losing her mind. I did a spell to talk to her last night, you know, she's going psycho-crazy again. She's no good to us now even if I could get her out."

"Still, what's done is done. It doesn't change that there is no Slayer, and it doesn't change what's going to happen here. We need to come up with a plan to fight..." The tinkling bell at the door announced the presence of Dawn and Spike's rapid entrance. Removing the flaming blanket from his head and stomping it bitterly, Spike glared at them all. Dawn silently took the seat by Xander, reaching for his hand. She gave him a small smile when he looked at her, and the dead look in his eyes warmed almost imperceptibly. He squeezed her hand in response as Spike ranted at Giles.

"A plan to die, you mean. You can't fight the Kasha'ra without the Slayer and you bloody well know it, better than I do. The buggers are immune to magic, they can't be burned, decapitated, drowned or in any way killed in any of those other charming ways you might be imagining. Sword of Hikira-jinn through the heart, only thing that'll kill them. Got the sword. But the sword can only be wielded by a Slayer, and we don't have one of those. Case closed, kids."

"Nevertheless, they cannot be allowed to open the Hellmouth-"

"You just don't get it, do you? You. Can't. Stop. Them!"

"What are you saying, Spike? Run away?" Willow asked softly, her anger dissipating at the sight of Dawn holding Xander's hand.

"Bloody right, run away! What choice do any of us have. I'm heading to South America tonight, and I'm takin the nibblet with me. I suggest you all come along for the ride, or go someplace else, I don't really care. Get out of Sunnydale or get dead. Those are the only choices left."

"I would think that, being her legal guardian, I might have a say in whether Dawn goes on a sleepover, let alone a trip to South America." Giles' tone was quiet, but that deadly anger was right below the surface. Spike knew the Watcher had been looking for an excuse to stake him ever since Buffy's death, and had to struggle to keep from flinching. He raised his chin stubbornly, his determination to save Dawn outweighing his apprehension.

"Not when that guardian is loony enough to keep her in Certain Death Town, no."

"Spike's right." Everyone in the room jumped at the sound of Xander's voice. It was obvious to Buffy that this was as much due to the fact that he had spoken at all as to what he had said. He looked at them each in turn, then addressed the rest of his comments directly to Giles. "I can't speak for the others, but we're leaving, Giles. I found a specialist in Illinois. He's looked at all of Anya's records and he thinks there may be a chance, some hope." Buffy sighed in relief. Anya wasn't dead, although from the sounds of it she was pretty bad off. In a coma, perhaps. "So, I'm taking her to Chicago, I've already made all the arrangements, we leave tonight. I can't...I just don't have it in me to fight anymore, and if the world's gonna end, I want to be with her. And I...I'd kind of like her to know that I'm with her, too, if that's at all possible." Giles stared at Xander for a long moment, then simply nodded. Xander gave Dawn's hand one more squeeze, then stood up. He gave Spike a long look. "No, I still don't like you. Take care of Dawnie. Keep your promise." Spike nodded gravely.

"Always. Good luck, Harris. And I hope your girl wakes up." Willow and Tara had both stood when Xander did, and now wordlessly they each wrapped their arms around Xander, holding him in a group hug. Tara let go after a minute but Willow hung on, putting her head against Xander's shoulder then speaking to him softly.

"Anya'll be alright, Xander, I know she will." Xander gave a quick nod and released her. He gently grabbed her chin to force her to look him in the eyes.

"Go, Will. This is hopeless, and you know it. Don't stay here and die, I don't want to lose you too." As he let her go, Willow glanced at Tara. She was trying to look brave, but her eyes begged Willow to get them out of there too. Willow turned to Spike.

"Where in South America?"

"Peru. Pucallpa, I think. I used to have some friends there. Flaqop demons, very peaceful chaps, not vamps, they can help us. And I can take her into the rainforest if need be." Willow nodded, her face showing a decision reached.

"Take Tara with you, Spike. Giles and I...we'll catch up to you later."

"No! Willow, I won't leave you!" Tara cried, panicked. Willow smiled at her bravely, resolve face in place, but the solemnity in her eyes told Tara the truth of it. She would stay and fight with Giles if he wouldn't go. Willow drew her girlfriend into her arms, holding her as if she was the most precious thing imaginable. Buffy knew that for Willow she was.

"Tara, please, you should go. Spike will take care of you, and you know I'll find you. I'll always find you." Willow gave Tara a lingering kiss, salty from both of their tears. She released her just as gently as she had taken hold of her, then nodded at Spike, who took Tara's arm. He gave Willow a half-smile and decided to try one more time. 

"You should come with us, Red. This is a lost cause, even the Watcher knows it." Willow shook her head and looked at Giles. Despite her anger with him, she wouldn't leave him to face this new danger alone.

"I won't leave Giles here by himself. And my parents, all these other people, to die. We'll figure something out, we have to. And then we'll catch up with you guys. Right, Giles?"

"Willow..." Xander began in a low voice, stopping when she pointed at her expression. Resolve face, there was no point.

"Right, Giles?" Willow repeated pointedly.

"Yes, we'll catch up with you as soon as we can," Giles said weakly. Buffy exploded.

"No! How can he do that? They can't fight these kosher things, they've got to run! Why won't they run?"

"Because it's who they are, Buffy. And because there's no one else." Thing One said matter-of-factly, no judgment of Buffy in his tone.

"But can they win? Without...without a Slayer?"

"No." Thing Two's eyes were sad as she spoke. "Without a Slayer, the Hellmouth will open. The Kasha'ra are ancient demons, they've have been around for millennia. They are few in number because we were able to restore balance by giving one of your predecessors a sword that could kill them, otherwise humanity would have fallen under their rule a long time ago. Other than the sword they cannot be killed. They have been waiting for centuries for this opportunity. News of your death made them bold enough to try to gain their victory now."

"And they're heading for the Hellmouth." Buffy watched silently as more goodbyes were said, and as Tara put her arm around Dawn and led her away behind Spike. Xander had already left for the hospital, and Willow and Giles were now alone. He cleared his throat.

"You should have gone with them, Willow. As much as it pains me to admit it, Spike was right. Without a Slayer to wield the sword, there is no hope."

"I won't believe that, Giles. There's always a hope. There's a way, there's got to be. We have two days to find it and we will. Buffy wouldn't give up and I won't either." She gestured towards the spell book sitting in front of her. "I've been looking into spells to transfer the Slayer essence into another willing vessel. I'm thinking, if we can transfer Faith's essence into me temporarily, I can use the sword to kill them." Giles began to look over the spell she had marked, and as they discussed it he began to look optimistic for the first time. Buffy grinned.

"Go Will, always the smart one. That'll work, right?" Rather than respond, the two companions took her hands again. They shimmered into the darkness once more.

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Feedback please!


	6. Beyond - Part 2

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing, especially the characters in this story. I'm merely borrowing them for the pure pleasure of messing with their lives. 

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Buffy's eyes barely had to adjust to the light shortly thereafter, because the place they emerged into was nearly as dark as the darkness had been. She knew where she without seeing. Sunnydale High, just outside the ruins of the library. She could hear chanting from inside and they entered quietly through the already open doors. The chanting was the seven Kasha'ra demons themselves, who were beginning a ritual to open the portal. A ritual that apparently involved the sacrifice of several small children currently bound and gagged near the Hellmouth entrance. The demons were only about Buffy's height, but looked quite nasty with several rows of jagged teeth in their overly large mouths. They were steel gray over most of their bodies, but with nasty red tails that likely held some kind of toxin. Shark-demons, Buffy mentally dubbed them. 

"Where are Will and Giles? It looks like they're cutting it pretty close to the wire here," Buffy asked, just as the two burst in, Willow holding a shining silver sword as if she'd been born to it. 

"You started without us. I'm disappointed," Willow smirked with bravado. As the first demon moved toward her, she held the sword at the ready, only slightly trembling. The demon held a sword of his own in his claw, and twirled it expertly as he talked. 

"You are not the s-s-Slayer," the creature hissed. "You will die." 

"That's what they all say," Willow answered, and Buffy could hear an echo of Faith in her tone. 

"The spell must have worked. Go get 'em, Will!" The two began clanking swords, and it was clear that Willow was moving with Slayer strength and speed. This was clear to the Kasha'ra demons as well, as they began to speed up the ritual. Willow dispatched the demon with a blow to the heart, then took on another one. Giles, in the meantime, had quietly slipped past the distracted demons and was attempting to free the children. He was so intent on untying and calming them while keeping half an eye on Willow's movements that he never saw the humanoid figure sneaking up behind him. Buffy screamed as Giles was grabbed and turned, a large knife plunging into his stomach. The demon smiled at him mildly as the Watcher gaped at the hilt protruding from his stomach, then back at the smallish man who had delivered the blow. 

"Sorry, can't let you to do that. I didn't go to all this trouble, getting the Kasha'ra here and all, to have you spoil it again." His eyes began to glow black as his expression darkened with anger. "You may have destroyed the magnificent Glorificus, but she will be avenged. Know that all humanity will suffer in torment for your sins." He pulled the knife from Giles' stomach, and as Buffy screamed his name again, Giles sunk to his knees, looking up at his killer with the breath for only one final word. 

"Who..." The demon smiled as Giles collapsed to the ground, blood beginning to pool around him. 

"I'm sorry, we never were introduced, were we? The name's Doc." 

"Giles...oh God, not Giles, please," Buffy moaned. She watched powerless as Doc stepped nimbly over Giles' dying form. He held out his hand, and in it was a small globe that reminded Buffy of the infamous Orb of Thessula. He spoke a few guttural words, and Willow suddenly cried out and fell to her knees, dropping the sword. She glowed briefly with a pale green light, then the same light glowed from the globe in Doc's hand. Willow looked up fearfully as Doc chuckled. 

"Really, I can't believe you thought you could be a Slayer. You're a third rate witch whose time has run out." He dropped the globe, watching it shatter, then grinding the glass shards into powder with his foot for good measure. He looked up at her and grinned. "Looks like time's up for the real Slayer, too. And, by the way, for your whole stinking race. The human plague that has infested this plane of existence for far too long will end tonight." 

Willow's eyes began to glow black, and she lifted both of her hands in front of her and pushed into the air. Doc's body flew backward through the air and exploded through the wall. Buffy heard further crashes and realized he had burst through at least two more walls besides. Willow's agonized scream brought her friend's attention back to her in a hurry, and Buffy saw that the Kasha'ra she had been fighting had lashed at her stomach with his tail. Her shirt had ripped away and the skin where the tail had touched it turned black and bubbly. She fell onto her back, her eyes blinking in shock. 

"Willow!" Buffy cried and ran to her friend. She couldn't touch her, but she kneeled beside her anyway. Her friend's body was convulsing and her breathing was shallow and rapid. Willow's eyes seemed to focus suddenly and she struggled to speak. 

"Buffy," she rasped, reaching out almost to where Buffy was kneeling beside her. Buffy tried to take her hand but the invisible barrier again was in the way. 

"I'm here, Will." she replied, fairly certain she wouldn't be heard but unable not to speak. Willow began to cry. 

"I'm so sorry, I tried my best, I really did. I wanted to be your big gun, but I failed. I failed you. Please forgive me, Buffy." 

"Will," Buffy whimpered, her voice filled with pain. "I'm so proud of you, you didn't fail me. I love you Willow, please hang on." Willow smiled through her tears and pain, like sunlight through rain, and her convulsions subsided. 

"Love you too, Buffy," she whispered as her eyes closed and her breathing stopped. The earth trembled, and Buffy knew the Kasha'ra had won. The Hellmouth would be opening soon. Willow was dead, Giles was dead or dying, and the others would lose their lives soon as well. She knew it like she knew her own name. Buffy felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into Thing Two's familiar green eyes, looking at her with concern. "Our time is up, Buffy. We need to go back." Buffy stood, allowing the being that looked like Willow to support her. She closed her eyes to block the sight of the Hell before her until the darkness claimed her for real.

************************************** 

Buffy opened her eyes. White on white again, back in Between. She looked around and saw that she again seemed to be alone. She knew better, so she began to speak tearfully to the intense whiteness around her. 

"Do you know how long I've wanted to have a normal life? From the moment I found out what I was. Being the Slayer, it's pretty much no fun. Do you know what it's like, trying to live between apocalypses and monsters. Of course you don't, you don't live, do you? Not the way we do down there. It's horrible. It's beyond horrible. It's almost beyond tolerable." She sank into the chair, burying her face in her hands. "But what I just saw...what I just saw is worse. Willow...Giles...and the Hellmouth will open. I can't allow my friends, my sister, even Spike to suffer that way, not to mention the rest of the world, knowing I could have done something to stop it. And if what you're showing me is what's going to happen, I couldn't ever have a normal life anyway, could I?" 

"Don't agree 'til you know the particulars, pet." Buffy looked up, shocked, into Spike's eyes. He was the last form she had thought that the beings would take. He nodded at her in cool amusement. "It's 'Thing Two,' Buffy. By the way, lovely name, that, thanks so much." 

"Buffy," a low voice called, and Buffy sighed. She knew it was probably Thing One, but she marveled at how like Angel he sounded. He could pack so much meaning into just the sound of her name. "It's time for your decision. You know what you need to know." 

"She needs to know everything, and you know it. Keepin' secrets from the girl, it's wrong and we both know it. You can't let her get this far and not have the whole story, it's bloody criminal." At the guilty look on Angel's face, Buffy knew something was up. She looked the Spike double in the eyes, knowing she could trust him to tell her the truth. 

"Tell me. What am I missing?" "If you choose to go back, pet, it's not going to be easy. The loophole we spoke of in the rules? Well it's a very tiny, knotty little loophole. In order for us to get you back as the Slayer, something has to be sacrificed. Something big. And you're the one who has to do the sacrificing." Buffy sighed. 

"Of course I am, who else? I'm always the one making with the sacrificing...let's see, there was me, you," she pointed at the Angel visage, "me again...what is it I'm supposed to sacrifice now?" 

"If we send you back to be the Slayer, we can never call another one. Not when you die, not when Faith dies." Thing One explained reluctantly, his brooding countenance uncomfortable. "Every time a new Slayer would have been called, it will be you from now on, Buffy. You'll be the Slayer until the end of days." Buffy blinked, stunned. She could not get that to compute. 

"I'm sorry, but huh?" 

"Instead of adding the Slayer essence to the girl, we would be adding your essence, your personality, your being to every sweet young thing called. Every Slayer will be Buffy Summers, at least in spirit," Thing Two continued. 

"Forever?" Buffy asked weakly. 

"Until the end of days." Thing One repeated. 

"And the end of days would be when, exactly?" The two beings looked at each other and shrugged.

"Couldn't say, exactly," Thing Two replied. 

"And what about my mom? My friends? I would never see them again?" 

"Yes, you would, eventually, but it might be a long time. Others would help you in your different incarnations, other Watchers, other family, other friends." Thing One responded. 

"We know it's a pisser, Buffy. If you say no, what you saw happen is what's gonna happen. Hell will be brought to earth and all will suffer. The only one who can stop it is the Chosen One, and you are the only one we can choose." Thing Two's voice and visage began to change as he was speaking and by the end Buffy found herself again looking into her mother's eyes. 

"The choice is yours. We know it's not an easy one." Giles' voice in her ears told her that Thing One had changed as well. As she looked around her, she saw other figures approaching out of the blinding whiteness. Xander smiling with Anya at his side. Cordelia walked in as stylish as she remembered her from high school. Wesley entered with Faith sauntering at his side. She saw Oz and Tara with Willow standing between them. Dawn hand in hand with Spike, and Jenny Calendar oddly standing with Angel. She sensed that these were beings like the ones she had been journeying with, not figments of her imagination. They formed a kind of half circle in front of her, their expressions all earnest, almost worshipful. None spoke except for the two who had been there all along. They were still masquerading as Giles and Joyce. 

"If you choose to go back, you won't be alone. We'll be watching you always, and you'll be strong, Buffy. You're the most powerful Slayer there's ever been, and if you go back you'll be even stronger," Thing Two offered gently. 

"But I will be alone. I'm always alone," Buffy answered. She looked at them each in turn. "I won't really know you're there, will I? I mean, will I hear a bell ring or pick up a feather? I didn't think so. I'll be alone." 

"Your friends, your sister, they'll be with you, Buffy. This time, this one time, we can give you back the body you knew. You will return to Sunnydale in time to defeat the Kasha'ra, and you will be Buffy Summers until you die. And then you have another form, but you will still be Buffy Summers. It's just that only you will know." Thing One once again was polishing his glasses as he spoke, unwilling to meet her stare. Buffy almost smiled at him. 

"And they say you can't live forever," Buffy quipped half-heartedly. The truth was there was no choice. She couldn't let Willow and Giles die as she had seen, and she couldn't let the others either. She could still hear her sister's screams from when she was on fire, and if it was in her power to save her that kind of pain again, she would do anything. She had died to save the world and her sister, because it was her gift. She just hadn't realized it was the gift that keeps on giving. 

"Send me back. Give me my body. I'll do what you want, I just can't let them die like that." The glowing smiles on the familiar faces brought it home for her. She needed to do this as much as they needed her to. 

"Thank you, Buffy," Her mother's voice was filled with pride. "We know the sacrifice you make is more than any one person should have to bear. You are a credit to humanity and you will not be forgotten." Buffy blushed in embarrassment as the gathered beings erupted in impromptu cheers. 

"Yeah, yeah, I rock. I just have one request. I ask a question, you answer it. With the truth. You don't even have to let me remember the answer, I just want to have it, okay?" After a quick non-verbal communication amongst the group, Giles nodded. Buffy looked at him and grinned. "Who are you? I mean who are you really?" He smiled back at her. 

"We don't have actually call ourselves by names, you know that. You call us by many titles, including, I believe, The Powers That Be. But really, we are...who we are. Tell me, who are you?" Buffy spoke her answer firmly as she vanished from Between, on her way to continue her journey. 

"I'm Buffy, the Slayer." 

************************************** 

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